Winter's Child
by StellaRenee
Summary: Vain Rianna sends eight sorcerers after her beautiful sister, Neva. Can Neva kill these sorcerers and save her self?
1. Chapter 1

Her eyes went blank at the sight of Monsieur Penn with a dagger. He thought she was stupid and innocent, _he should be frightened,_ Neva thought.

"Monsieur! Wha-what's going on? I-I mean, I don't understand!" Even as she spoke she drew the knife from her back pocket, "What are you doing?" The man let out a cackle, and as he drew back his arm to strike, she herself moved, much more swiftly than the aging man. He was dead within seconds. Neva sighed, _no use in stretching it out_, she thought.

Penn, the hunter, had been a lover of Rianna for years, and any friend of Rianna's was an enemy of hers. Rianna hated her. The multiple attempts at Neva's life had taught Neva a hard lesson, _trust no one._ No person could ever understand another's pain, no one person could forgive and eliminate a lifetime of hate. Since their mother had died nothing had stopped the hatred between the sisters. Rianna's father had been King, and she had never forgotten it. Rianna detested Neva's beauty and talents. There were rumors that Neva was immaculately concepted, making her holy and wonderful, which only made Rianna's temper flare. Rianna was conceited, truly vain and she thought herself more beautiful and spectacular than anyone. Neva thought that Rianna let herself get the way she had. When the girls both turned 18, Rianna tried to poison her food, three months later Neva found an assassin stalking her. Neva taught herself to kill, to hunt, and to love revenge.

The incident with Penn would be inexcusable in Rianna's eyes. At this Rianna would finally announce Neva a criminal, banished from France. As Queen you could do that. Neva would never be welcome in court or public again.

"Now you've done it," she said aloud. A bird glided down through a break in the trees to rest on her shoulder. She looked around and took stock of her situation.

enough for two days, her bow, her hunting knife, one extra set of clothing, a sleeping roll, her falcon, Mead, and an almost full water flask. "Mead, what shall we do?" She wondered to the bird. _South, _she decided, _south towards Spain. _And so she set out, not too confidently.


	2. Chapter 2

Rianna struggled to stay calm. Around her, her ladies clustered nervously, frightened of the explosion that was most definitely about to emerge from their Queen.

"HOW DARE SHE!" It came, "WHAT HAVE I – HAS SHE DONE!". The ladies cowered, some whimpered. Throaty sobs came from Rianna. More quietly now "She will wish she is dead."

"Your majesty?" One of the ladies began nervously. "Neva is missing. She never returned."

"Let us keep it such" Was the sullen reply. "Neva Toulouse is not welcome in France from this day forth. Bring me Monsieur Cartier, and put out an alert: If the Princess is spotted she should be killed on the spot." The ladies scurried out, only somewhat relieved. Everyone liked the princess. Neva was easy-going and kind, and had a smile and a friendly hello for anyone who wasn't loyal to Rianna, which, recently, had been everyone but Monsieur Penn. If you had asked any citizen which sister would make a better Queen, Neva would be out of their mouth before you finished your query. She was tall and thin, with beautiful blonde hair, which had one black streak. Among the peasants it was said that the streak represented her strength and determination, while her golden locks showed her kind and fair nature. She was everything the French wanted in a queen. While Rianna Toulouse's dark hair and permanent frown scared the people as much as her decisive and merciless actions did.

Rianna was pacing in front of her window when Monsieur Cartier arrived.

"Your majesty?" he said, his calm exterior hiding his internal nervousness. Rianna turned around abruptly with a false smile.

"Monsieur, how lovely to see you. Please, sit." She cheerily exclaimed while signaling a maid to get tea. "You see, I have a, shall we say, interesting conundrum. My sister killed my one true love, and though I ache in my heart to forgive her, my advisors tell me I must make an example of her for the good of the country.

Cartier was not fooled. "I understand. Is there any service I can provide for you?" He knew in his heart what she was going to ask but he could not believe it, even after witnessing the Queen try to kill Neva two times and hearing of the many others.

Rianna's almost maniacal grin widened, "I do have a service I'd like you to perform. Neva is now, unfortunately, an enemy of France and a danger to our people. She needs to be killed. I need you to take care of her for me."

The Monsieur struggled to keep his face still and his eyes dry. "Yes, your Majesty,"

"This will have to be handled with the utmost delicacy, you understand," she continued. "And I think it would be wise if you did not let this subject loose among the court. She has certain –friends that might be, shall we say, disgruntled, at the fact that she is destined for the earth." Her smile had all but disappeared but the malicious twinkle in her eye still remained.

Monsieur Cartier gulped nervously. "Yes, your Majesty".

"good, you may go." Rianna dismissed him and he all but fled out of the chamber.


	3. Chapter 3

Neva watched the fire as her dinner roasted over the open flame. She thought back to her childhood in court when her mother had been alive and Rianna had been almost kind to her. At that time the two sisters were the joy of the court, and they put a smile on the face of everyone they passed, not that everyone hadn't been happy already.

King Toulouse, Rianna's father, had been a kind and wise king, and during his reign the people flourished as much as the crops. When the sisters' mother started to sicken, Toulouse began to let the kingdom fall into disarray. The kingdom's fate fell into the hands of the king's advisors after both the Queen from her illness and the King from sorrow had passed on. The advisors did not know how to rule a kingdom, as when the king had been alive he hadn't needed any advising, they had just been there for decoration. The people suffered under their hands and the country had never truly recovered.

When Rianna came of age there had been a grand ball and a solemn crowning ceremony to make her Queen. It was the next day when Neva fell ill from poison. Luckily, she hadn't taken all of the draught so she survived, but not without learning a hard lesson: Rianna would never let her live willingly.

Mead dropped gracefully down from the above branch to wake Neva from her dreary thoughts.

She took the meat off the fire and began to eat. She was ravenous. She had been hiking all day towards the south. Neva felt lonely in the dark woods. Mead was barely a companion. She finished her meal and stoked the fire before curling up in her bed roll for a long night's sleep.


End file.
